Waldorf Armed Career Criminal Exiled to More Than 17 Years in Prison for Illegal Possession of a Gun

Waldorf Armed Career Criminal Exiled to More Than 17 Years in Prison for Illegal Possession of a Gun

GREENBELT, MD—U.S. District Judge Roger W. Titus sentenced Louis Martin, age 51, of Waldorf, Maryland, today to 210 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for illegal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. A federal jury convicted Martin on April 9, 2014.

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein and Special Agent in Charge Stephen E. Vogt of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

According to the evidence presented at Martin’s five-day trial, law enforcement intercepted numerous calls indicating that Martin was attempting to obtain a firearm, planning to commit a robbery, and participating in the re-sale of stolen items. Martin was a previously convicted felon and as a result, was prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition. Witnesses testified that the investigation led to the execution of a search warrant at Martin’s residence on April 24, 2013. Martin was interviewed by FBI Special Agents who testified that Martin told them that he believed officers were at his home that morning because he told several people that he had been watching an armored truck and planned on robbing it. Martin also admitted to the agents that he had recently been trying to purchase a gun.

During the course of the search Martin left the residence to go to work. After Martin left, officers searched the second floor master bedroom, and discovered a loaded firearm folded within a stack of jeans in Louis Martin’s closet. Agents testified that they drove to Martin’s place of employment to interview him. When they informed Martin about the firearm recovered from his house, he admitted that he knew the gun was in his bedroom closet when the FBI searched his residence. Martin was arrested on May 1, 2013.

Martin was previously convicted of robbery; armed bank robbery; and bank robbery and use of a firearm in connection with a crime of violence.

United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the FBI for its work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorneys Leah J. Bressack and Deborah A. Johnston, who prosecuted the case.